1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information visualization system that can carry out information display and provide a three-dimensional walk through to a user with little processing by embedding various types of information as visual objects at the desired positions in an image of space generated virtually by a computer.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventionally, starting with the Information Processing Committee Study Report 96-IM-28-7, among information visualization systems that use a computer, there are information visualization systems that provide an architecture for an information presentation environment by embedding as visual objects various types of information (contents) at desired positions in three-dimensional computer graphics (three-dimensional CG) image generated by a computer.
Using these systems, users carry out an operation in which a virtual viewpoint varies within an image of a three-dimensional space in this information display environment and an operation in which the visualized objects are selected and moved in this information display environment. Thereby, the users can display a visualized object in a sequence of images and they can selectively obtain the information embedded there.
Furthermore, many systems have been realized in which the information related to the visualized information is displayed to the user (if the image is a book, for example, its bibliographic information or a list of books by the same author), and formats for an additional display of the related information by directly selecting one of the visualized objects on the screen by pointing, for example, and formats for the additional display of the related information using an icon or menu selection on a screen are generally widely used.
In these systems, the walk through interface, wherein users can search for information as if they were walking, is intuitively superior and widely used as an interface wherein the users move a virtual viewpoint within an image of a three-dimensional space.
In particular, a format in which the users can freely determine the direction of movement of the virtual viewpoint at any given time and the system can display each of the images of a space depending on this determination is advantageous because the users can carry out a desired search by performing a walk through as they please.
However, in order to generate these walk through images, high capacity three-dimensional CG computations must be carried out and, for example, hardware dedicated to the three-dimensional CG processing is necessary for generating the walk through images in real time as directed by the operations of the users. The above will be referred to as the first conventional technology.
In contrast, a method that uses movie files, starting with the QuickTime VR from Apple Corporation, is well known as a method that makes possible the above information visualization without using hardware dedicated to three-dimensional CG.
According to this conventional technology, users, for example, generate as a movie file the images of the path anticipated in advance that the user will walk through, and the walk through images can be presented in real time to the user by playing the movie file.
Here, when generating the movie file, high volume processing like the above-described three-dimensional CG processing is necessary, but once the movie film is generated, playing the movie subsequently using relatively little processing can be realized. Furthermore, in this method, in the film file the images of a plurality of paths are embedded, and the users can selectively play them. This means that while the users are not completely free, to a certain extent, they can perform the walk through as they please. This will be referred to as the second conventional technology.
In addition, independent of these, a format proposed at the Information Processing Committee 49thNational Conference, Proceedings 1 W-7, is known. This format generates what is called hyperlink information for managing the association between the objects displayed in each scene of a movie file and the related information stored separately, and in the case that a predetermined position in a predetermined scene in the movie file is selected, the information related to this is called and displayed.
By using this technology, the users select particular objects displayed in the image of the space while performing a walk through using the movie files, and thereby can obtain information related thereto. In this manner, what is termed a hyperlink interface can be realized. This will be referred to as the third conventional technology.
However, these conventional technologies have the following problems. Specifically, according to the second conventional technology starting with QuickTime VR, various types of information embedded in the images of space can be obtained while selectively performing a walk through along a plurality of paths determined in advance, but in order to generate these walk through images, the associations between these movie files must be made by manual operations after generating the movie file for each of the paths.
Furthermore, in order to generate in a form that finally joins into one file the information that establishes the relationships between movie files and the plurality of movie files, in the case small-scale modifications, such as adding and partially modifying walk through paths, the entire movie file must be regenerated, and further, this operation must be carried out using manual operations, as described above. Thus, in the format according to the second conventional technology, when first generating the movie file and when associating movie files, there is the problem that many manual operations are necessary when regenerating the walk through images to incorporate additional modifications in the case that there are additional modifications to the walk through path are made later.
Furthermore, according to the third conventional technology, in each of the scenes of the movie file of the walk through image, the contents displayed therein and the authoring of the hyperlink information with related information must be carried out manually, and thus many manual operations must be added when generating this hyperlink information. Also, when the contents of the virtual space and the hyperlink information are modified after generation of the movie file, there is the second problem that an image of a space that automatically incorporates these modifications cannot be displayed to the user.
In consideration of the above-described problems, the present invention has as a first object providing a system realizing an information visualization system that allows the user to walk through a plurality of paths in a three-dimensional space selectively without using hardware dedicated to three-dimensional CG, and in the case that the three-dimensional space information, the walk through paths, and the like have been modified, automatically incorporates these modifications in the walk through images.
The present invention has as a second object automatically generating hyperlinks between contents displayed therein and the related information in each scene of the walk through image in the information visualization system.
As a means of resolving the first problem, the information visualization system according to the present invention comprises a partial image generating means that generates three-dimensional CG images along a walk through path based on walk through path information that includes three-dimensional space information and branching information, converts these three-dimensional CG images into walk through movie images having a movie format, and further partitions these walk through images at the branching points of the walk through path, and generates a plurality of partial images in a movie format; a branching information generating means that generates branching information related to the branch connections (positional relations on the walk through path) between each partial image generated by this partial image generating means; a branching information storing means that temporarily stores the branching information generated by this branching information generating means; a partial image storing means that temporarily stores the partial image generated by the partial image generating means and sends predetermined partial images depending on the partial image selection instructions sent by the partial image link play means described below; a partial image selection means that sends partial image switching instructions for switching partial images stored in this partial image storing means according to the path selection operation of the user; and a partial image link play means that sends these partial image selection instructions according to the partial image switching instructions that this partial image selection means sends, and at the same time, links and plays the predetermined partial images.
The above-described structure is characterized by the point that the users are able to perform a selective walk through using partial images having a movie format generated automatically from three-dimensional space information and information about the walk through paths. In addition, even in the case that the three-dimensional space information and the walk through paths are modified, this structure is characterized in allowing these modifications to be automatically incorporated therein.
Furthermore, this structure is characterized by the point that because the walk through movie is used after being partitioned into partial images, only partial images related to any modifications are regenerated, not all partial images, in the case that the three-dimensional space information and the walk through paths are modified.
Moreover, the three-dimensional CG processing in the above-described branching information generating means does not have to be carried out in real time because the this processing is carried out in advance, unrelated to the operations of the user. Thus, the present invention can be effectively implemented without using hardware dedicated to three-dimensional CG processing.
This means that the walk through can be realized without using hardware dedicated to three-dimensional CG, and the number of operations during the walk through image generation and during image updating can be dramatically decreased in comparison to the above-described second conventional technology.
As a means for resolving the above-described second problem, the information visualization system according to the present invention adds to the means for resolving the above-described first problem a hyperlink information generating means that displays the contents (visualized object) at a certain position in a certain scene in the respective partial images based on three-dimensional shape information about the contents (visualized object) visualized in a three-dimensional space, three-dimensional position information, and link information for the related information of the contents (visualized object), and furthermore, generates hyperlink information indicating the position of the related information to be presented to the user when the user selects the contents images (visualized object).
The above-described structure can provide to the users a hyperlink function that can present to the users contents (linked information) linked to the selected visualized object by selecting the visualized object displayed on the screen while a user is performing a selective walk through, and furthermore, can automatically generate hyperlink information for the hyperlink function from the three-dimensional space information, the walk through path information, and the visualized object information.
Therefore, the number of operations necessary to generate the hyperlink information can be dramatically decreased in comparison to the above-described third conventional technology. Furthermore, the images of the space can be presented to the user automatically incorporating updates thereof even in the case that the contents of the virtual space and the hyperlink information are modified after the movie file is generated.